The Universitas Indonesia Library is one of the main supporting units for the implementation of the Tri Dharma of Higher Education – education, research, and community service – at the Universitas Indonesia (UI). Since the library at UI was integrated into one container “The Crystal of Knowledge” in 2012, this library is committed to providing information and references for the academic community as an effort to form quality human resources (HR), in order to be able to compete in the international arena. Therefore, the quality continues to be improved, both in the sources of information shared and librarians who facilitate visitors.
As an effort to increase the professionalism of librarians, the UI Library organizes a webinar with the theme “Towards Professionalism in Management of International Reputable College Libraries”. The webinar, which was broadcast via the Zoom channel on Wednesday (13/4), was attended by representatives from the Indonesian National Library of Indonesia Librarian Development Center, Indra Astuti, S.S., M.P.; Chairman of the National Professional Certification Agency, Kunjung Masehat, S.H., M.M.; and UI Library Service Coordinator, Dra. Calarence Naibaho, M. Hum.
According to the Vice Rector for Academic and Student Affairs at UI, Prof. Dr. rer. nat. Abdul Haris, a librarian as a supporter of education in higher education has a strategic role to ensure the existence of institutions at the international level. Librarians must take advantage of advances in information technology to improve competence and service quality. Increasing professionalism concerns the attitude, mentality, and commitment of librarians to have competencies that are in accordance with the times. “UI is committed to supporting UI library development activities with the hope of having a positive impact on UI as an international-class university,” said Prof. Harris in his speech.
As professionals, librarians must have integrity, discipline, ensure accountability, and comply with the code of ethics. The librarian’s professionalism is also demonstrated through competence, commitment, and dedication to his work. To compete globally, librarians are required to have international standard of professionalism consisting of scientific competencies according to fields, managerial and leadership competencies—both organizational and self-development—as well as diversity and community competencies in global issues.
Another thing that librarians at universities need to pay attention to is their workplace which is an academic environment. Higher education is the center of civilization of modern society and intellectual groups so that librarians are required to have high intellect, fast adaptability, high creativity, leadership skills, and innovation. “We work in an academic environment that has its own characteristics or markers. It becomes a reference in developing competencies, providing services, and organizing or managing libraries,” said Kalarensi.
To maximize competence, librarians can obtain certifications. Competency certification is a legal product that legitimizes the achievement of one’s abilities in certain fields determined by the competent authority and based on competency standards. According to Kunjung, there are three main aspects to determine a person’s competence, namely skill, knowledge, and attitude. The certification scheme for librarians includes cataloging library materials, preserving library materials, and developing library collections.
Competency certification is important as an effort to develop sustainable competencies. Certification is needed to bridge the missing link between industrial needs and formal & informal education. In Government Regulation Number 24 of 2014 concerning the Implementation of the Library Law Articles 34 and 35, it is stated that librarians must have professional and personal competencies and certificates of competence.
The competency certification process for librarians includes several stages. First, the librarian submits an assessment application within the specified certification period. The application data is verified and if declared complete, the librarian is directed to the pre-assessment consultation process. Librarians who meet the standards are entitled to take part in the assessment and issuance of certificates. Meanwhile, librarians who fail can make an assessment appeal. The assessment includes four methods, namely written tests, interviews, observations, and portfolios. The assessor will select the appropriate method for each competency certification participant.
